Sly meets his maker
by slyfan123
Summary: Well, what can you do when the woman you 'love' is on the opposite side of the law... no im not talking about Carmelita, I'm speaking of Sly's mom! But will he find out before its too late..
1. What maker?

well, we meet again, here i am, writing yet another story that wont be finished for a while...or may even be a one hit wonder... maybe that's why everyone hates me...

LaZY pEoPLe RuLe!!

DISCLAIMER: I DON'T OWN SLY COOPER, but I own Mona and hardware heaven. :D

**location: hardware heaven, **

**paris france**

Now dont ask Sly what he was thinking when he was thinking; unless you want to hear the worlds longest list of everythings and nothings. Leaning on the wall near the entrance of Hardware Heaven, a small shop near downtown (emphasis on the **down**) France, nothing was out of the ordinary. Everything remained conspicious, aside from the fact that the store was right around the corner of some dark alleyway, and there were only one to two streetlamps on each block. There was no van in sight; and that raccoon leaning on the wall, pssh, could have been anyone. So, as I was saying, there Sly was, thinking the unguessable, waiting for his pals to buy that modem or whatever it was they were in there for, and tonight was pretty a silent night. Until **she** arrived.

----MONA----

"She" or better known as 'Mona', had been watching Sly. Not for a day or two, but more per se, a whole year. She had finally tracked down his location; of course the most obvious place in the world for a master thief in the most excuisite and expensive Paris. Even more specifically: a run down alleyway, in a creepy dark street next to a descreet but no less creepier shop. But still in Paris.

"This block needs god." she whispered as she turned her back to the wall. Had he had seen her? She peeked again. Nope. Placing a finger on her pursed lips, she had to think of a way to get his attention.

"hmmmmm"

----SLY----

Tonite Sly wans't in the cheeriest mood; heck, you wouldn't be either if you had found out the object of your desire was shipped to England unexpectantly just a few hours before you could get your paws on it. But Hey, another day, another dollar, as Sly's father always said. He opened his eyes. Nothing. No one. A pin drop could be heard in this silence. Sly thought he heard a cricket. Nope, that was just a trash can. He closed his eyes again just be silently startled by a new sound.

"Sly."

His right ear twitched to the right ever so slightly, but that whisper definetly sound like anyone he had known. Turning to it would be like slapping the person in the face with a big "I am Sly Cooper" sign. He closed his eyes again.

"pssst. Sly."

_ignore it, ignore it, ignore it, ignore it..._

_----_MONA_-----_

Now why in the friggin world wasn't he answering? _Obviously because he was indeed sly cooper. _Now miss Mona, she has had some expirence with criminals. Its not like she didnt know how to get into their head. Well, HELLO, she did marry one, and had attempted to follow the thieving path. Unfortunetly, it wasn't her "thing", so she had dedicated her life to joining the law. But of course, before she gave thievery the ol' cold shoulder, she had picked up a few things. She knew what thoughts hid behind those calm eyes, she learned to identify strenghts and weaknesses just from a glance, or even a lucky 3 minute talk. Yep, she was very persuasive, and it was about time she show Sly a little trick.of.her.own.

----SLY----

"psssttt, Slyyy."

Like i said before, Sly was NOt in the mood. He was NOT about to answer this woman, he was NOT about go inside the electronics store and retreat, and he **definetly** was NOT going to walk away. Ok, maybe he might. He exhaled deeply and opened his eyes very...disturbed-like.

Looking straight ahead and almost talking to space, Sly asked, "You looking for someone?"

And well, whaddya know, a mysterious woman popped out from the street corner. How mysterious, Sly honestly never would have guessed. This raccoon stumbled, but than had a look on her face that said she had just found what she was looking for. Nonetheless, she replied,

"Well, I was looking for someone, but I guess I must have the wrong person."

_Lovely, but too old for my taste. "_Sorry about that."

"No problem" She reached out a paw to greet Sly. _How...warm.. _"And I'm Mona." There was really no need to lie, she knew that Sly didnt know who she was.

"Kent. You're new around here." Sly had stated, more than asked.

"Yeah. Paris is... beautiful." She pretended to gaze at the city.

Sly turned his view to look into the store entrance at Bentley and Murray, who were already on the way out.

Trying not to sound rushed, Sly asked, "Anything else I can help you with?"

"Oh no, no. I'll get around. I'll hope to see you again sometime...son."

And with that, Mona backed around the shadowy street corner.

_..Son? what is that, some new type of slang?..._

_----_MONA_-----_

The raccoon flipped open her phone and brought it to her ear.

"Hello, Bette? you won't _believe_ who I bumped into..."

-----------------------

Well, well, and so this is where we part. Will you send me a review? Will I decide to make another chapter of sly/ mom madness? And when will I ever stop procrastinating? The world may never know.

Ta-ta!


	2. tears in my eyes

okay, okay people, since SO many people are asking me when will and why wont I continue, I will!!

The show must go on!!

oh yeah, and I am considering keeping the POV changes, _cause thats my original style._

**location: Somewhere in paris,**

**dont ask me where**

"Hello, Bette? you won't _believe_ who I bumped into..."

"Yes, him."

"No lie."

"I know."

"What? okay I'll buy you something."

She confirmed the person's wish, then ended the call with a reluctant 'i love you too'. Then, as she dialed a new number, she mumbled. "Ok that was mom, now i need to call Gabby."

"Hello Gabby?"

"Gabby?"

"Gabriel!!"

There was a response from a very girl-ish voice. Well, more of a grown woman trying to sound girlish. Mona told Gabby of her trip to Paris, the food, the places, AND how she had bumped into her only son, who she had not seen in ages.

The voice on the line asked if she was sure. She was.

The voice exclaimed, "Oh!! Sly Cooper, and just how is he??"

Mona struggled to say something. She sighed as she walked down the avenue, becoming the sudden object of attention to every streetrat lurking in the dark alleys. As the raccoon neared civilization, or better yet, a block with street lamps and lively looking people, she whispered,

"...He's a spitting image of Sam..."

Gabby yelled into the reciever, making Mona pulled away from her phone. "SAM??!! SAM??!! WHAT DO WE CARE ABOUT HIM? HE'S DEAD, DEAD DEAD, D-E-A-D DEAD, ANCIENT HISTORY!!"

Mona figured that as a snap back to reality.

"You're right...he is."

Gabby asked pleaseantly, "So, now what are we gonna do?"

"Not sure yet. I mean, it's been forever, we still need to find out more information. Things have changed, Gabriel."

"Okay, See ya back at the hotel."

"Yeah bye."

Okay, this was weird. Since when did Mona, the ice queen, the Black-hole-for-a-heart, the unemotional woman, feel grief? There was no one and nothing to feel sorry for. Things happen, people die, life goes on. And she knew this, so why was she wiping away a tear?

----SLY----

The bell on the door made it clear that Bentley and Murray were done buying whatever thay were buying, and as they watched that oh-so-mystyerious figure step around the corner, they looked at Sly in interest. Murray elbowed Sly playfully on the shoulder, but it felt like more of a hard shove.

"We leave you out here for a minute, and youre flirting like crazy."

"Who _was_ that woman?" Bentley rubbed his chin, suspicious as usual.

Sly rubbed his shoulder from the pain, but at the same time pretended to rub it just to play around, as Murray was. He forced a smile.

"She's just some weird tourist looking for someone."

"Who?"

" For some reason..." Sly looked down at Bentley, then at the van, realizing that meeting was just a little **too** strange. Sly was famous, he was world-reknowned, he was a master thief. Now, what **would **an everyday 'ordinary' tourist be doing looking for a criminal?

"...Me."

------------------------

Yah, I agree, its short, but worth the wait, no?


	3. let's play shadow

woo! on a rool!!! OH YEAH!! Never, I repeat, NEVER have I ever published a third chapter of a story!! This is incredible!!

First, I wanna thank my fans

Then I wanna thank myself

lastly, I wanna thank my parents...

oh what am i kidding, they dont care,** thanks everybody!!**

**location: **

**the **_**Re' kois **_**hotel **

**(don't ask me what it means)**

_"__Good morning Jodi, I'm Jorjiba Patino standing in front of Interpol police station, where Ms. Inspector Carmelita Fox has just returned from Russia, well, actually, more like __rescued__. It has seemed to occur that Inspector Fox was found clinging to a runway atop an inactive volcano. Oh, here she is now. Ms. Fox, we have heard that one of our camera men reported a sighting of you and notorious criminal Sly Cooper 'smooching'. Is this true?_

_"This is most certainly not true. Nothing occured between me and the criminal."  
_

_"But, Inspector, pictures were taken, we have one witness, did anything occur of the sort?"_

_"I assure you, NOTHING happened."_

_"And what do you say about this?"_

_"That photo must be fake."_

_"But ma'm-"_

_"Do you accuse me of lying? Although this thief has attempted many tricks to sidetract me, __**kissing**__ is certainly not one of them."_

_"And what about the fact that you were __**handcuffed**__ to the rail of the runway?"_

_"No comment. I am not answering any more of these __**foolish**__ questions."_

_"But Ms. Fox, wouldn't you like to put an end to these rumors?"_

_"__**I'm**__ going to put an end to __**you**__!! NO MORE QUESTIONS!!"_

_"And there you have it, Inspector Fox is going to put an end to me. Are these rumors true? Is there a reason for her denials? We may never know. Back to you Jodi, in the studio."_

_Click_

"Woah, that fox is _mean_."

The raccoon threw the remote aside. "Shush, gabby; she's not mean, just in denial." Mona cluthed a throw pillow to her chest and squinted, lost in thought.

Gabby shrugged. The rotweiler flipped a brown wave aside and glanced behind to herself in the mirror. She was georgeous, and she knew it. She wrinkled her black nose, full of herself. Then she realized it. She turned back to Mona and snapped,

"Denial?! You mean you _believe_ the publicity?"

"Of course. It's pretty obvious she was lying."

"Oh, Mona, this is ludacris. Let's go over the main points _**again**_." She reached over to the coffee table and folded the newspaper page back. She skimmed the article, then cleared her throat.

"Hmm, okay it reads here that _supposely _Ms. Inspector fox tailed Sly cooper and then cornered him on this **runway**. It was heard that she gave him a ten second head start for him to escape, possibly she was doing it to rub in the fact that he was to be captured? Anyhoo, on the count of one, thief Sly Cooper impulsively kissed Ms. fox and ran off, and it was not until he escaped that she had found out that she was handcuffed to the rail of the runway by Sly himself."

Gabby slapped the paper on the table, resting her case. Mona stared at the front picture of Carmelita, coldly. "He's sneaky."

"He's devious." The dog cooed.

"He used the same trick Sam used on me. Yep, thats a father's boy."

Gabby flicked her wrist, which made all her bracelets jingle, and snapped, "There ya go, mentioning **Sam** again."

"You know, I let you go the first time, but now you are just being ignorant."

"Me? Ignorant?"

"Yes, you. Why don't you just-just go somewhere?!" Mona yelled as she rubbed her temples.

"FINE! I'M LEAVING!" Gabby snapped her teeth, then got up to get her coat.

"FINE! I WON'T CARE!!"

Gabby pulled her left arm into her coat, and sneered at Mona. "I'M GOING OUT, AND I'LL BRING YOU BACK A SANDWICH!!"

"Make it pastrami."

She agreed. "Okay, I'm outta here."

Mona heard the door close. Good. Gabby was gone. Now _Miss_ Mona could have some time to think to herself. She closed her eyes and thought, thought, okay, she wasn't thinking. She sighed, a little down. Staring at the maroon carpet until she could see the very molecules that existed within the thing, she got up and walked to her window. Such a priceless view could be seen; even from the third floor, and Mona leaned to look at the people below. Some vendors, a few waiters, and a blue haired-fox. Wait, what was the last one? She leaned in more and squinted as her mouth dropped to the floor. This gawk suddenly turned into a smile as a most marvelous plan hit her. She raced to her cellphone.

"Hello, Gabby, stop where you're at, I have a little job for you..."

----CARMELITA----

_Stupid reporters, stupid rumors, stupid cooper. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't __**be**__ in this mess. Oh, he will pay. _Carmelita stomped furiously down the avenue, babbling on to herself in spanish how stupid everything was. Then she stopped. And sighed, and remained calm. But then she got angry again when she thought of what other things would result from Cooper's actions. _Oh, and when the chief hears about this, he'll be furious. It's always that stupid raccoon messing up everything! And yet..._ She raised a paw to her lips and almost smiled. Shaking out of it, she continued to walk down the sidewalk.

The sun shone behind Carmelita, creating a great black shadow to walk beside her, and almost seemed to be piercing through her back and into her soul. Carmelita felt it, and she **hated** the sun for that. She hated everything right now. The fox stopped to wait for the street light to change, while her shadow took a step foward and **then** stopped. That was not her shadow. Ms. Fox stared at that shadow, then shrugged as she brushed through pedestrians also crossing the street. The sun continued to tail her, and so did the shadow.

After a few countless minutes of pacing around the avenue, Carmelita knew more than she needed to know. This shadow, or better yet, person, had been following her. And another thing was that this person was trying to do it with out being noticed, but horribly failing.

"What do you want?"

The shadow answered from behind her. "What?"

Carmelita turned around, frustrated. She met with a short, young woman, almost. Oh no, it **was** a woman. "Oh, **I** know what you want." She placed her paws on her hips. "You're a reporter looking to get a 'scoop' or whatever by following me."

The person began to studder, as she back away. "Um...um, yeah, no I'm not.."

"Yes you are!" The fox yelled. "Look, I will not answer any more questions, so just BACK OFF!"

The person was now terrified by this fox's temper._ She is__** mean**_, she thought. Placing her paws up in defense, she answered, "See, see, I'm not a reporter, I'm just new here."

Carmelita's lip curled in confusion.

The woman continued. "I've heard all about you, you're Ms.Inspector Carmelita fox. You're the greatest, and well, seeing how unaware I am of the crime rate in Paris, which I'm sure is very low because of your great work, I'd figure I'd stick by you."

For a second, Carmelita didn't know how to take this. _She sure knows how to kiss up. _"Look, I'm **very **flattered, but this city is as safe as can be. So, just..." she made a fanning away gesture with her paws. "shoo."

"Okay, Ms.Fox. I respect you, and I'm sure what you say must be true. Sorry if I bothered you."

And the woman left.

Forty-five minutes of walking passed, and Ms.Fox had finally arrived home-a cozy 2nd floor uptown apartment. She let out a sign of relief as she entered her sanctuary. No cameras, no chief, and best of all, no cooper. Slamming the entrance behind her, every step she took only made her more exausted. She threw her keys on the bed and plopped after it, face-first onto the plain bedspread. Then she heard it.

The door.

The light knocking became heavier with each passing minute, like a secret knock or "important news" knock. Carmelita lifted her head heavily and sleepy-eyed as she slided to the door. Twisting the knob for this lock and pulling out the chain for that, when she had finally made her way down to the knob and opened the door, no one was there. The fox poked her head out of the entrance to see a shadow; a swift shadow. Wait, more like a person! Carmelita rushed out the door, slamming it behing her, and chased after the shadow.

Her adredalin raced as she did down the steps, but when she had reached the last staircase, the shadow beat her to the door and escaped into the world. The vixen sighed as she dropped her head in defeat; whoever this other shadow was or what it was up to she may never know. Carmelita heard someone enter, and she looked up to see an unwanted person.

"YOU AGAIN?!"

Indeed there **she** was again-carmelita's biggest fan-this time inspecting her mailbox.

The woman struggled to come up with an explanation. "Oh, Ms. Inspector Fox, I was just...just..."

Carmelita clutched her fist and pointed threatening-like at the person. "Okay, following me is one thing, but entering THIS building and checking MY mailbox? What are you, a stalker?!"

The woman sighed, then apologized up and down. Carmelita let her go; eyeing the woman until she dissapeared out the door and down the block; and the fox went upstairs.

----GABBY----

"Okay, there, your little job is done; Happy? I almost got myself arrested following this madwoman." Gabby groaned into her cellphone, with it's many charms and stickers.

Mona blinked surprisingly at the quickness of Gabby's job; never had she been caught **and **able to think of such a good cover-up on the spot. It's too bad Gabby could not see her adknowledgement. "What was the door number again?"

"It was 3J. Why?"

"Yes," The raccoon proposed. "No reason, its just good to know."

Gabby put a confused face. "Is there something you're not telling me? And how do I know you're not making this up on the spot? Mona? MONA?!"

Mona had already hung up.

----------------

O what a chapter!! Sly should make an appearance soon, I mean, it's his story too. SLY MUST ALWAYS BE THE STAR!! ARGGG!

Me: oh look, mail.

Gabby: what is it?

Me: It's a letter from the IBM keyboard people saying we can't type no more a's

Gabby: WHAT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO MORE A'S?! A'S ARE GREAT, THEY'RE LIKE THE BEST. THEY'RE AMUSING, AMAZING, MAN, I LOVE A'S. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!

Me: re you hppy?

Last but not least, **Vanished Paradigm, I await your review...**


	4. eye opener

Lets just cut to the chase, why dont we?

Disclaimer: I own Mona, Gabby, hardware heaven, The paris Times, the Re kois hotel, AND Kromboslavia, a small piece of land in Russia.

Daddy spoils me :)

**Location: The secret hideout**

**(It's so secret I dont even know)**

When the thieves got home they crashed on the first thing they sat on; Bentley on the computer chair(despite his modem-installing), Sly on the sofa, and Murray, on the floor.

The next morning, as the turtle and hippo remained asleep, Sly stretched out and crept to his room. He entered his closet, knelt down on the floor and removed the floor board. Picking up the Thievius Raccoonus, he crept back downstairs for a reading.

_"...I'll hope to see you again sometime...son."_

Ahh, son. Only three people had ever called Sly _son_; his father, some slang-talking jewelry dealer, and his...mother. Now that he thought of it, Sly and his mother were very distant; or maybe just not as close as he and his father was. Physically, mommy was there for the for the hugs and kisses. Mentally, mommy stopped everything to talk if he needed to. Spiritually, mommy supported Sly with every desicion he made. Emotionally...

That's where she lacked.

It seemed that though his mother had done alot for him, there was always something missing.

He flipped about the pages. _Theres nothing about mom here. No names, no mentions; dad doesn't even speak of her, _Sly thought. He looked up, suddenly having a flashback of the time he overheard his father and his mother arguing.

"What do you want? I'm doing the best I can to be a mother for your son!" She had said.

_His son?_ Sly blinked, confused.

Then the raccoon heard a yawn. A TURTLE yawn. Sly closed his book with a quickness. His train of thought had crashed.

Bentley yawned, snapped his teeth, and countlessly blinked before waving his finger conspicously at Sly.

"You were reading something." Bentley assumed.

"Oh no," Sly stressed, running his finger over the binding. "I was just about to have this for breakfast."

They laughed together.

"Since when do you read this early?" The turtle glanced at the clock that read 6:45.

"Since I just wanted to assure something. It's nothing really."

The two heard a sudden thump on the door.

"Newspaper's here."

----GABBY AND MONA----

"Look what I got!!" Gabriel held up the perfectly rolled up edition of _The Paris Times _from the room-servant. She placed the paper on the table and tightened the knot on her robe. Taking a seat across from Mona, she leaned her head on her hand, trying to read Mona's mind.

"What are you thinking?" She batted her eyelashes.

Mona closed her eyes, disturbed. "I'm thinking what I'm thinking." She took another sip of her coffee. She opened the first page of the newspaper to read aloud the headline in bold print.

----SLY----

**PRICELESS GEM TO BE GUARDED BY WORLD-FAMOUS INSPECTOR**

Sly felt a gleam in his eye. He smirked.

----GABBY AND MONA----

**"BY FLORIE PERRIE"**

"Hey, don't we know her?" Gabby looked into Mona's cup. _No marshmellows, not hot chocolate._

"Yes, you-" Mona held her tongue. "She's the friend I paid to write the article, remember?"

"Right."

----SLY----

_March 7,2005- The priceless gem, also preferred as La Vida Rubia, has just been placed in the hands of the museum owner, and has yet to be put on display. It will stay overnight with only the strictest of guards, for fear that Sly Cooper will find a way to get his paws on it. _

Oh, Sly **will **find a way to get his paws on it. He and Bentley exchanged glances, then turned to read the paper.

_Invited to the special exibit is the honorary Carmelita fox, whose family had been with interpol for three generations._

----GABBY AND MONA----

_"There is no way that raccoon will be able to reach this gem," the Fox insures. "I will guard this with my life."_

Mona looked at Gabby and Gabby looked at her and she looked at Gabby back.

"No she won't," They scoffed simutaneously.

"He'll probably just swoon her again-like he does most of the time-and then leave with the gem." Gabby laughed, unhearing of Mona banging her head on the table.

"Idiot." the raccoon scoffed.

"What do you mean?" Gabby whimpered.

"**She** won't be guarding it because **you** will."

"I'll what now?"

The raccoon didn't answer her question; instead she rose from the table. "-Which reminds me, I've got to go take care of business."

Gabby continued to stammer on, as she watched Mona enter the bedroom and back into the living room with an outfit change, into the bathroom and back to the coffee table.

"Look!" Mona slapped the paper on the table, impatient. "You just-just find something nice to wear." Her eyes softened at the sight of Gabby fliching. "You got some guard duty to do tonight." Mona said with a smile.

Gabby opened her mouth to talk. The rotwieler's eyes spoke for her. _I do?_

"Yes, Carmelita doesn't even know about the invitation. I'll go...reaquaint with an old friend, snag you and I a name in Interpol, and then you'll go find a way to..."

Mona raised her hand in front of her mouth and whispered the rest of the plan into Gabby's ear.

"Oooooh. That's wrong."

Mona needed to manipulate the dog. "I know it's wrong." Mona flicked her wrist, seemingly not caring. "But if you want to refuse having Sly..."

"No, no, I'll do it."

That's what Mona wanted to hear. She winked goodbye, and turned on her heel to the door.

Gabby spoke to Mona to wait.

----SLY----

After Murray joined the two at the kitchen table, Sly was about to turn the page when a pink folded-up note fell out.

He opened it. "Hmm," He smiled to his friends as if it were story-time. "A note."

Sly read to himself first. His eyes stopped at 'son'._My dearest son, _His smile faded. _I miss you immensely. I've been trying years to contact you with no luck. Why haven't you contacted me? Anyway, I'm very sorry about your father. Maybe if i were there, things wouldn't have happened the way they did. I wish things between he and I were different. I wish things between you and I were different. I'm sorry for making him lie to you. _

_-Mother_

Woah. Sly stared into the paper with the neat cursive written on it for a good second, and then turned the note around. No name, no date.

Mother? But Mommy's dead.

Bentley adjusted his glasses. "Who is it from?"

Sly crumpled the paper into his fist.

"I don't know." He answered, but why did he have a feeling this note was indeed adressed to him?

----????-----

"And what's with that note?"

"We're gonna throw him off a little bit."

--------------

Me: Hey Kelani

Kelani: Oh, the A's are back? I thought you got that letter-

Me: Don't worry about it. I managed to buy some on the black market.

Kelani: oh.

Gabby: running around like crazy NO MORE A'S????????????? AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

Me: Dmn tht dog


	5. And besides, I dont even like you

First lemme thanks my adoring fans and all the people who bothered to read this and (ahem), **not** leave a review. 

You freeloaders! Im not typing this for my health!

Big poo. Big poo on all your heads.

and

Thanks my awesome fans, for being behind me 100

You're **greatly** appreciated.

**Location:**

**Interpol police station-**

**same morning**

Carmelita did not get any sleep last night. After that incident with the 'crazed stalker fan', it honestly left the vixen paranoid. But she was never one to admit it. She walked down the hall and turned the corner to the hallway that led to her room, but then immediately bumped into Kelani, one of the other officer's interns. The teen lioness batted her eyelashes at a perplexed Carmelita.

Carmelita personified 'waking up on the wrong side of the bed.' "Well?" her hands balled to a fist. "MOVE!"

Kelani did not move. She blinked, forgetting what happened three seconds ago as she usually does. "Where ya going?"

When you run into someone, shouldn't _they _move out the way?

Carmelita disliked Kelani. She was a pest. Carmelita sucked her teeth and sighed. No, disliked wasn't the word. She **despised **the lioness. Because Kelani the daughter of the chief, could stay an intern for 40 years if she wanted to. Kelani had all the priviliges, and could get away with doing practically _anything._

Kelani wasn't leaving the station, nonetheless moving out of Carmelita's way anytime soon.

"I am going to my office."

Kelani stepped foward real exicted-like. "Can I come with?!"

Carmelita closed her eyes and stepped back. What a horrible way to start the day. As if things weren't already hectic as they were; in Carmelita's socialand now,work life.

She said through a fake smile, "Sure, Kelani, you can tag along."

"Wee!!!!!!!!"

When they got to Inspector fox's room, there was today's newspaper already on the desk.

_Who has been in my room? _Carmelita picked up the paper and read the headline to herself:

**PRICELESS GEM TO BE GUARDED BY WORLD-FAMOUS INSPECTOR**

Kelani peered over the inspector's shoulder. They both skimmed the rest of the article.

"They are?" The lioness asked.

Carmelita blinked. "I am?"

----SLY----

"Let me see it." Bentley reached out his small hand to retrieve the crumpled pink note but Sly held on.Bentley tried not to look down at Sly's fist.

"It's got no name on it; it must an ad." Sly pulled the note away and crumpled it tighter between his palms. He smirked to his pals, assuring them nothing was wrong.

Bentley very casually rotated the newspaper in order to read it from his seat. He knew his best friend better than that. "If you say so."

Bentley pretended to put it at rest, but Sly very well knew this note issue was far from over.

Even Murray knew it.

Sly mocked Bentley's style and neatly uncrumpled the paper and folded it in half, before dropping it in the garbage disposal.

Bentley scoffed at Sly's actions.

Sly smiled.

**SLY**

**01**

**BENTLEY**

**00**

----????----

She smiled deviously and turned on her heel, without saying a word, out the door.

The rotweiler stratched her head.

----CARMELITA----

The vixen slid the newspaper back onto the table, before changing her mind and picking up the newspaper.

"The chief needs to hear about this."

Kelani squealed. "OOOOOH! Can I go-"

Carmelita turned her head to give Kelani the most brutal glare EVER.

Kelani got the message.

Carmelita strided down the hallway, giving everyone a glare that pushed them to the walls of the hallway if they even glanced at her.

She chose not to knock on the chief's door, but to just enter; there probably wasn't anything to intrude anyway.

And there wasn't.

He looked up from his crossword puzzle at Carmelita.

"Inspector Fox, you know to knock at my door before just..._intruding_. What's the matter?"

"Chief, I just read this article in _the Paris times_; is there a job you assigned me to that I wasn't informed about?"

"...Well, I'm sure-"

The chief was cut off by the intrusion of yet another cop with a dilemma. "Chief Stan, of Interpol?"

That Chief almost leaped out his seat. He contained himself. "Mona?"

Carmelita looked back to meet with a raccoon woman with auburn-colored hair and piercing hazel eyes. Both, obviously, not belonging to her. (Of course, her nemesises always had to be raccoons; but Carmelita didn't know that part yet.) Carmelita turned back to the Chief.

"Anyway, the newspaper also printed an interview, which I dont recall happening..."

Carmelita was ignored. The Chief and Mona began talking up a storm.

"My, has it only been **forever** since the last time I saw you?"

"And though **you** look as though you havent aged a year."

"I would say the same for you,"

The chief broke a smile and continued to look past Carmelita.

Carmelita began to roll the newspaper up, before pointing it directly at the Chief.

"Chief Stan, about. This. Article,"

Both Mona and the Chief stopped talking and simotaneously stared at Carmelita, as thought **she** was the person who intruded.

"Inspector Fox, if you could for a moment," He gestured towards the door.

"But,"

The chief held out his hands like claws, toward the ceiling.

"MY GOD, INSPECTOR FOX, SURELY IT WOULDNT **KILL** YOU TO DO THIS ONE JOB!!???"

Mona pressed her fingers on her lips to hide her smile and contain her laughter.

Carmelita squinted her eyes, and left the room with an exasperated sigh.

She was embarrased; and flabbergasted.

After the loud slam of the door, Mona turned the lock and began to walk over to the chief. She leaned her arms on the table, directly across from the chief.

"Now, where were we?" She cooed.

--------------

Ouch, how catty this chapter was.

Kelani: Gabby, help me!!!

Gabby: What's wrong, kelani?

Kelani: I cant see! I cant see!

Gabby: Why? What's the matter?

Kelani: I had my eyes closed!!


	6. mona VS carmelita round 1

Yeesh, where are my pov's? and manners? I love you all, my fans!!!!

**Location:**

**Interpol police station-same morning**

"Now, where were we?" Mona cooed.

"We were discussing the reason you left interpol."

"We were not." Mona teased. She waved her hand in the air and stared into the chief's eyes, which made the chief turn unusually sweaty. There was an akward silence.

"What made you leave to Outerlake anyway?"

God damn. Someone get the violins. He was eating right out of her hands. Mona laughed to herself, picturing Stan kissing her feet.

"Well," She half-laughed, "I just felt that... France's crimes were too..._bland_"

"Bland? What makes you say that?" The chief closed his crossword puzzle book and straightened out his collar.

Mona lied. "Well, the crimes are so predictable; It's break-in this and robbery that. I needed something different, a real challenge."

"And thats what made you leave to the states."

_No, what made me leave to the states was the __**mysterious**__ death of my estranged husband. _Mona looked up at the ceiling.

"Yes, but lucky for us, I've come back to Interpol with a change of heart-" She made a fist and poked her chest out.

Cheif Stan gulped. "And it's very good to hear that."

Mona then immediately turned her back to Stan to cover her mouth that was ready to burst. She inhaled throught her nose and turned back at Stan with a sugar-sweet expression.

"Its so. and I need a favor."

Oh no she didn't. "What kind of favor?"

"Chief Stan," Mona looked down at the carpet and kicked at the carpet, like a child making a confession. "I need you to write up a quick reccomendation for my niece."

"For your niece? I'm afraid I can't do that."

"Please," She folded her hands together against her chest. "She's an inspiring cop and she needs just one more," She leaned foward and piched her fingers. "...Itty bitty reccomendation to attend the academy she oh-so longs to go to."

Stan furred his mustache. "An academy?" He felt himself becoming hyponotized again. "I'm afraid even if I did write her a reccomendation she would have no use for it, you should know that only qualified officers can attend."

"Of course I do," Mona toyed with her fingers and avoided looking into the chief's eyes. "But she's on probation."

"Probation!?"

"Yes, you see, she was reduced to mall security for a crime she didn't commit."

The chief agreed then changed his mind. "Well, Mona, I dont know."

"Oh," Mona streesed. 'She's wonderful and deserving of this letter, really! Her view on justice and her ambition could surpass any of your officers."

"Really?"

Mona regained her calm composure. "Not that.. your officers are un-trained, Cheif Stan." And then she begged like a child, "Please, she could really use this, I've never seen her want anything more."

The chief was buttering up again. "Very well, if your neice has as much potiential as you say, then I believe you. Here you are."

Mona practically snatched the paper from his hands. "Thank you chief," She read over the paper, and she said matter-of-factly, "And oh- could you possibly give her a job, tonight?"

"Tonight?"

"Yes, she could take the place of Miss Fox, who seemed so unwilling to go..."

Oh yeah. Carmelita fox was just here. "You're right, here you are, tell Miss Fox she needn't go to the...whereever she didnt want to go."

Mona stressed, "Thank you so much Stan,"

"Sure, Mona." The chief gulped again, as he watched the woman of his dreams close the door from the other side.

back at carmelita's office...

The door slammed open. Kelani, who was on the sofa, flinched.

"The nerve of that woman!" Carmelita began to tell Kelani the explicit version of what had happened.

"Sounds like a looloo to me." Kelani confessed, her eyes following Inspector fox as she paced back and forth across the room and cursing in spanish.

Suddenly, the door creaked open, and a newspaper slid across carmelita's desk. "Fox." Mona snapped. "You're off the hook."

And the door closed again. Carmelita restrained from opening the door and plummeting the raccoon that coincidentally resembled Sly Cooper. Woah. Maybe it was paranoia, or a hunch.

Just maybe.

------------------------------

Sly: Hey carmelita, can I ask you something?

Carmelita: Hmm?

Sly: If you felt really deeply about something , but were afraid to say it, would you say it anyway?

Carmelita:(blushing) Well i dont know sly, I think you should say whatever's in your heart-

Sly: Thanks Carm, now I won't feel so bad telling murray that he should clean up the bathroom after he showers. (leaves)

Carmelita:...


	7. good ol' tricks

Thanks to you, my loyal fans, I continue on with Sly meets his maker! And I bet your all like, ''oh yeesh, a sly cooper fanfic, and no sly! If anything, it should be called: readers meet sly's maker!'

But oh hohohohohoho, are you wrong if you thought that, cause Sly is right here, and he'll keep apearing until he dies! wait, that didnt come out right. Not that he does die, but someone will die, or will they?

**That night at the hotel...**

Mona closed the hotel door behind her. She glanced at Gabby- who had her arms spread out to present herself and her nifty outfit- and left to the bathroom.

Gabby pouted and stumped. "Mona!"

"What?"

"My outfit-my something nice to wear- you didnt say anything!"

"It's...cute."

An appaled chirp came out of Gabby's throat.

Mona rolled her eyes and exited the bathroom. She waved her wet hands dry. "It's cute, I said." Mona dug into her purse for a brown paper bag. "Now take this and get out of here." She annouced the time after turning to face the clock.

Gabby pretended to be mad. She grabbed the bag from Mona's hands. The contents were a fake name tag, a recommendation letter, a bluetooth and a -

"You're looking inside the bag like's there candy inside, get out!"

"If I'm doing guard duty, why do I need a-" Mona slapped Gabby's hand, and she dropped the mystery object into the bag. Gabby chirped again.

Gabby yelped as Mona threw her out the room. Gabby rose to her knees and banged on the hotel door.

"Mona! I dont know how to get there!"

----SLY----

Murray whistled a jolly tune as he steered the van around the corner. He loved to drive.

Bentley scribbled on layouts of the musuem, and Sly sulked in the passenger seat.

The master thief furiously flipped through the Thevius Raccoonus for what seemed the 30th time today. No mentions of mom anywhere.

_I've been trying years to contact you with no luck. Why haven't you contacted me? _

What's that suppossed to mean? Sly closed his book in defeat and rested his elbow on it. It was not like him to sulk.

Bentley noticed too.

"Sly, are you prepared for tonight? As you know I've planned a new way into the museum," Bentley said to himself, "...a route sure to keep Carmelita Fox out of our sights."

"Since when have I ever not been prepared?"

"That's what I like to hear."

Silence. Murray licked his lips. Sly twisted his cane. Murray started whistling again.

"You seem in a dark mood tonight, Sly."

"Bentley!" Sly turned and looked at his best friend, shocked pasted on his face. "I'm actually in a very **light **mood." Sly then turned back around and crossed his arms, like a child. "I'm just...thinking."

Bentley raised a brow. "Okay."

**SLY**

**02**

**BENTLEY**

**00**

----MONA----

It was nearing eleven now. Gabby had left about fifteen minutes ago with her agenda, and Mona was out to complete her own. She flipped her hair as the elevator doors closed behind her. The doorman opened the door for Mona, and she strided along, without so much as a 'thank you'. She opened the purse at her side to remove her shades and her cellphone.

With her phone on her shoulder, Mona waited for Gabby to pick up as she flipped her shades open.

:click:

"Gabby? Did they let you in?"

"Yeesh Mona, you dont even bother to ask if it was me; What if someone else had picked up the phone?"

Mona rolled her eyes behind her shades.

"You're speaking with the bluetooth, right?"

"Yeah, they put me in some huge empty exhibit room... its just me and this desk."

"Perfect. What's wrong with that?"

"Everything. This chair is uncomfortable, it's so quiet I can hear myself blink, I forgot my mp3 player-"

"Stop complaining."

"I'm just here filing my nails...Where are you?"

"Don't worry about where I am." Mona looked up at the flourescent street sign.

**-BIORE' STREET-**

**MUSEUM **

"Wait for him. I'll call you back."

"B-"

:Click:

---------------------------------------------------

This one is Paris Hilton's attention span short and Oprah show boring; it's a set up for the actual heist, Mona's agenda, Carmelita's doings, Gabby's doings, and Sly and Gabby's meeting. I wont make any promises, though!!!! ;D Next chapter sooner than you think!!!

Mona: Hey, listen to this riddle I just read.

Gabby: ooh goodie, I'm great at riddles.

Mona: A man has a fox, a chicken and some corn. He has to take them all across a river. He can only take one of the items at a time in his boat. However, if he leaves the fox alone with the chicken, the fox will eat the chicken. If he leaves the chicken alone with the corn, the chicken will eat the corn. What should he do?

Gabby: He- **ATTENTION!**

**IN AN EFFORT TO COMPETE **

**WITH OTHER FORMS OF LITERATURE **

**AND MEDIA, I WILL IMMEDIATELY BEGIN **

**PUBLISHING MY STORIES IN **

**HD**

**HIGH DEFINITION**

**I NOW BRING YOU THE SHARPEST, MOST VIBRANT STORIES THAT FANFICTION'S FONTS CAN PROVIDE!**

:anime sweat drop:

Gabby: It's not that hard if you think about it.


	8. museum break

Hello my fans!!!! Thanks so much for your touching reviews!! Here's another chapter, just for you!!

**At the museum...**

The Cooper gang got into the museum past the guards, security and the like with a route so secret that I didn't even know.

And so did Mona.

She crept her way into the museum through a different route, yet occasionally tailed the gang to check on what part of their break-in they were up to.

Mona watched from behind a wide sculpture as Bentley hacked his way into a security panel. She whooshed away and casually-but quietly- walked up to the camera room.

**In the security room...**

"So Joe, I'll tells ya, she's gonna give me this look like duhhhhh when-"

The security guard stopped in mid-sentence to turn his attention at a screen-among all the others-that flicked off. Suddenly, each camera screen began to flick off, one after the other.

The room that was once lit with the glow of the cameras was now almost pitch black. The security guard spun his chair around to face the other guard.

"Huh?"

The other guard flicked on his flashlight and switched it back and forth.

"Whaddya think happened here?"

They exchanged glances. "I don't know."

Both guards faced yet another surprise when the door flew open and Mona's silhouette then appeared in the doorway.

The first guard was dumbfounded. He pointed his stubby finger in Mona's direction. "Heya...you lady, you shouldn't be here."

Mona put her hands oh her hips. _Says who?_

The other guard began to walk towards her. "The museum's closed." He leaned in closed to Mona's chest, and she instictly leaned back. "Nor do you have any badges; not to mention your suspicious get-up, you don't _look_ like you should be here."

Mona closed her loose heavy jacket. "You can't possibly think _I_ look suspicious." She arranged her wide sunglasses.

"You look suspicious enough; I'll lead you out, come on." He reached for Mona's arm and she grabbed his in defense. He looked at her with surprise for a split second, before she back flipped him on the hard tile floor. As he lay moaning in pain, Mona walked over to the other security guard.

"Heya look lady..." He backed into the wall and pulled out his walkie-talkie but never got to call for back-up. Mona had already smacked the walkie-talkie out of his hand. He shrieked, and she swiped his belt for his taser and tased him-senseless.

She kicked the first guard to shut him up and shut the door. Mona plopped on the warm chair and slid off her gloves and glasses. She waited a second before pulling a flash drive out of her bosom and inserting it into the right port.

"The bad thing about computers are..." She typed. "...Is that there's always a way to get around them. Theives these days should stick to pulling the wires out of the cameras themselves."

With a click each screen buzzed back to life.

**Meanwhile...**

Sly crept in the hall before Bentley. Murray trotted last, and curiosity drove him to look up at the camera lens. Behind the camera, a red light flicked green. Murray smiled-unknowingly-and trotted on.

**Back in the security room...**

Mona pulled off her sleeves and removed the purse from her shoulder. She pulled out a floppy disk and respectfully slid it into the computer's hard disk drive. She then typed on the keyboard another set of words that commanded the screens to generate a floor plan of the museum. Amongst the floor plan were yellow blips, each one resembling a guard. She blinked, scanned the floor plan, and found the blips she was looking for. One was blue, the other was green, and the last was red.

**Somewhere in the museum...**

Gabby had her legs crossed; shaking her ankle nervously. She flied her nails with an old nail file she discovered in the desk drawer. She occasionaly stopped filing to get a long look around the room, above the rafters and behind her desk, which was for some creepy reason located in the center of the room. Her brown eyes returned to her nails, until her cellphone rang. Gabby jumped a little, then turned over in her seat to the bag. She fumbled to find the bluetooth, slipped out all the contents of the bag, shuffled her hand around the items, then stopped to recognize the weight on her left ear. She pressed the button on the bluetooth.

"He-hello?"

"What took you so long to answer?"

"I forgot I had it on, sorry."

"Stay where you are." Mona said drone-like, absorbed in watching the other blips on the screen shift and blink.

Gabby sighed and groaned out, "Okey-dokey."

**Meanwhile...**

The three thieves made their way to the gem, suspicious of the difficulty of the task- or better yet, lack of difficulty. Sly cooper literally waltzed over to the case holding the gem and slid the point of his cane under the senser on the left corner of the pedestal. Of course, Sly made sure to do this simple task with a flourish and failed to impress Bentley. The turtle rolled his eyes as Murray lifted the other end of the case. He reached up and grabbed the gem. As Murray gently replaced the case and Sly removed his cane from the sensor, they jumped at the gasps of Bentley's coughing fit. Murray snatched the gem.

"You okay buddy?"

"Yeah, " Bentley gasped. Sly patted his back. Bentley looked at his hands then patted his shirt.

"There seemed to be some type of powder on the gem."

"For fingerprints?" Sly asked.

"No."

"Maybe it's baby powder."

Sly and Bentley turned at awe at the hippo, his mouth suddenly small.

Murray shrugged. He trotted with the gem ahead Sly and Bentley-with pasted faces of disbelief.

----------------------------------------------

oooooooohhhh, I can't capture Bentley's personallity at all, i just cant make him any other way except mean at Sly. arg..

It wasn't the loaf of bread birthday cake or the masking tape streamers that made Laura suspect her birthday had been forgotten.

But the sack of oranges she got for a present was obviously from the tree in the backyard.


	9. We all scream for ice cream

All my thanks to all the fans that added my lil ol story and lil ol me to their favs! you guys are the best!! Thanks for taking the time to review my story and encouraging me, did i mention you're the best!

**Location: Carmelita's place**

Carmelita turned on her side and glanced her tired eyes at the digital clock. Twelve forty-nine. She sighed; yet **another** night without sleep. Turning on her back and rubbing her temples, the fox decided that closing her eyes and clearing her mind wasn't enough; maybe a book would help her fall asleep. Her body ached from non-sleep and dragging herself out of the bed that teased her with its soft cushions was a task in itself. '_The sleep masters-sleep guaranteed'_, the tag on the edge of the mattress read. Carmelita pulled the dishelved covers over the edge of the mattress and dragged her feet to the living room.

She made her way to the shadowy bookcase and felt through the books. Of course, besides the darkness of the room and the lack of her reading glasses, her headache made it even harder to identify the titles and it appeared as though all the books were blending together. She looked at her hand that was supposed to be on the edge of a dictionary, but its edges appeared smeared and blurry.

This is what it must feel like to have a hangover.

Carmelita sighed again. Does Rum Raisin ice cream even have rum in it? Of course it does, that's why it's called Rum Raisin. Or maybe it doesn't, maybe it just sounds nice in front of raisin, like rocky does in front of road.

Ice cream.

Carmelita and Kelani went to get ice cream.

Carmelita sighed again, but not for herself. Poor Kelani. Poor young, naive... stupid-annoying-Kelani. The fox squinted. She despised Kelani. What made her agree to go anyway?

**some hours before...**

After overhearing the brief rude message from the new raccoon lady, Kelani just sat on Carmelita's sofa, her mouth shaped like an o.

Carmelita stood a few feet away from her, lost in angry thoughts.

Kelani finally rose to speak. "Off the hook from what?"

Camelita reached and picked up the folded paper. She held it with both hands "Off the hook from the museum job; but I dont believe that wretch, I'm going."

_What?! _Kelani's mouth dropped. This was like, something her father would never do. He was the harshest in the world to his officers. What Kelani didn't know was that she didn't know Carmelita well enough to think that she would actually take a day off from work. She whined and lept in front of Carmelita.

"NOOO! If the chief said not to go, then why go?"

Carmelita put her hands on her hips. "Who are you to-"

Kelani interrupted. "Really Carmelita, you've got to let loose sometime. You're _always _working," The lioness whined to the fox, as a child would to his mother when she got home late from work as usual and was unable to fix dinner. Kelani's voice lowered. "If she's saying it because the chief said it, then maybe someone else is going to do it."

Carmelita wasn't having it. She strided past Kelani and out the door.

Now she was begging. "Come on, now you'll have some free time and you can go out!"

Carmelita quickened her pace. Now she really had to go to that museum. "I'm not going out with you anywhere."

Carmelita had read her mind. Kelani insisted, "Aw, come on Carmelita, my friends are like totally gonna blow me off anyway like they always do, and you have nothing to do, so what's so wrong with spending some time together?"

_Because I don't like you._ "Because I don't-" Carmelita huffed. She put her hand on the doorknob of the chief's office, indifferent to the way he had just spoken to her and to whether _Mona_ would be in there. "I do have something to do."

Carmelita surprised herself when she saw that pang of hurt and failure in Kelani's eyes; She actually felt a little bad. Little did the fox know, going out with Kelani will give the girl some self confidence- that the lioness knew how to hide her lack of so well. Carmelita will change her thoughts about maybe only disliking the girl a little, and she will find out what's hidden behind that always happy smile of hers. And by the end of the night, she would have done a good deed and warm her own heart up a little.

"Then again," The fox let her fingers slip from the doorknob, and having coming up with no strong reasons to either go to the museum or go out with Kelani, she spoke. "I guess we could do something."

Kelani squealed. "Yay! I'll tell daddy I'm going."

Carmelita moved back from the door as Kelani squeezed her way through.

**In the office...**

The chief hovered his crossword puzzle protectively. He was stiff and nervous, and it seemed as though everyone who looked at him could read his thoughts. Still, he completed his puzzle with ease.

"Four letter word for passionate desire..." He put his eraser to his chin, then filled the boxes in using the n from a word going across. "Mona."

"Daddy?"

Snapping his neck to stare wide-eyed at the intruder, his daughter's eyebrows raised.

"I'm done for today." Oh; she meant to ask, but it came out as a statement- her father's gonna blow. She braced herself.

"Okay." He dismissed her, looking back down in his arms where the squares of his crossword puzzle- all filled out with Mona- were silent.

"Uh..." Kelani let out as she closed the door and shrugged at Carmelita.

"We're outta here!"

**A few hours later...**

After mall trotting, park dwelling, and lunch snarfing, Carmelita made sure to let Kelani know that this would be the last stop.

"Okay, Okay," She had said, waving her manicured hand.

And here they were, a _Le petit creme de ice shoppe _in midtown Paris.

"Why are we here?"

"Carmelita! You said one more stop, and this is it, my fave-o-rit ice cream shop!" Kelani folded her hands and swung her hands to her sides. She skipped inside. Carmelita followed, reluctant.

The shoppe was small; one had to make a left once they entered and take 15 steps to reach the counter. There were two tables on either side of the shoppe, and they were all occupied by young daters.

"Ah Goody," Kelani said, smiling at the guy at the counter. Carmelita stepped suddenly loud steps in her boots, retrieving the annoyed stares of disturbed girlfriends- and the interested stares of unfaithful boyfriends. She ignored both.

When the females reached the counter, Kelani leaned completely over-Carmelita thought she was going to flip right over it- and her nose barely touched the nose of the guy at the counter.

"Heya Joe."

Carmelita rest her elbow on the counter, then rest her head on her fist. This guy who Kelani seemed to be real friendly with-well actually, Kelani was too friendly with everyone; Carmelita dismissed that thought. Still, this nineteen or something year-old guy was as red in the face as a... a guy blushing. She looked down into the freezer at the various containers of ice cream, suddenly feeling embarrassed.

"H...Hi...H...Hello Kelani!" The red guy managed to utter. "Here for ice cream?"

"Well ah-duh,"

Carmelita snapped her teeth.

Kelani continued. "Me and my friend here-"

A voice yelled 'Jared' from somewhere behind the shop somewhere. Kelani's smile vanished. The guy at the counter excused himself and left. Carmelita looked at Kelani with a skeptic look. The gods had to be testing her. Why today?

Kelani whispered to Carmelita a little too loudly. "Carmelita! Don't worry, this guy's _in love _with me, he _always_ gives me discounts." Carmelita returned her attention to the ice cream. Kelani spoke to her head, "When he comes back, he'll probably feel he has to apologize, with more ice cream!" Kelani did a thumbs up.

Carmelita spoke through her teeth. "Where is he?"

Carmelita's call was answered by an older bartender-looking guy.

Kelani and Carmelita exchanged glances.

"Sorry for that." The older guy pulled an ice cream scoop out of his apron pocket and opened the sliding door of the freezer, respectively. "What are we getting?"

Kelani, suddenly pissed -not only about Joe's disappearance but about the strictness of his father's attitude- drummed her fingers on the counter. "We are getting strawberry and," She looked at Carmelita for her cue.

"Rum...Raisin."

As the dad guy leaned into the freezer and began scooping, Kelani leaned over the counter again and said, "And make sure to makeCarmelita's_ extra-special_."

"Extra special it is, then."

Jared reappeared in the doorway of the only employees exit. He didn't have his apron on. He pulled off his cap and laid it on the counter as he swung open a little door on the side of the counter. Closing it behind himself and telling his father goodbye, he began to blush again. He bowed, and mumbled a goodbye to Kelani as well.

"Okay. Bye, Joe."

Little did the ladies know, as their eyes followed Jared out the door, his father was _specially_ preparing Carmelita's ice cream. He and the ladies both turned at the same time, and the sides gave suspicious looks across the counter. They paid for their desserts and left.

A few minutes into the walk home, Carmelita had taken her first lick, and it tasted...bitter. Now, she was unknowingly licking the sweet treat compulsively despite the fact that she disliked the taste and the burning sensation in the back of her throat. It had been a while since she had had ice cream, but was this really how much she missed it? Kelani had begun talking as soon as the little hanging bell announced their exit out of the shop, and her voice garbled on, like a chicken drowning. Carmelita looked at her as though she were a stranger. A stranger that talked so fast that no one could understand what she was saying.

To Carmelita, her yapping reminded her of her yakkity cousins. The fox's mouth dropped. How many words was this girl speaking in a minute? Was she even stopping to take breaths? She licked her ice cream, that was now flat in the cone. Woah. Brainfreeze. Snap back to reality. She squinted.

"Que?"

Kelani stopped talking. "What?"

"What?"

Carmelita sure was acting funny. "I said, I'm glad we were able to go out together today. I hope you're feeling better now."

Carmelita bit her cone. She didn't know what to say, and one of the reasons was because she had no idea what Kelani said. "Oh."

"Is that it?"

"Hmm?"

Kelani shook her head._ Nothing... _In fact, the lioness wasn't smiling. She was feeling a feeling that was indescribable, almost. She picked at the frozen strawberries in her ice cream.

"I mean, I really appreciate you coming with me today." She blushed. " My friends aren't very nice to me... unless they need a favor. " She faked a laugh at Carmelita, who had just bitten the bottom of the cone and was holding it upright as she sucked the remaining ice cream out. A guy walking his dog stopped and stared at the spectacle- the sounds, the sight, the everything- and his dog pulled forcibly until his owner stumbled down the sidewalk.

Kelani gave her the look of a very uneasy 'okay...' and she spoke, "I mean, for a while I thought you didn't even like me." She faked laughed again, while Carmelita licked her fingers. "But from the first time I saw you on tv, I wanted to be just like you. And when I did meet you and got to know you, I thought of you as like an older sister, or even like a mom-"

"Look, girl." Carmelita spoke with the help of her hands. She stressed her words. "Don't start getting all _mushy_ with me, we're supposed to be having fun outside!"

"Oh," Kelani smiled. She didn't expect for Carmelita to act like this, but Kelani wasn't acting herself as well, so she didn't look into Carmelita's attitude change.

So much for pouring out her hidden sadness and confiding to carmelita. "Sorry." She took a big bite out of her ice cream, and puffed her cheeks when it hurt her teeth.

**Currently at Carmelita's place...**

During the senior moment, Carmelita had managed to make her way back to bed. She was sitting up with her back flat against the headboard. She unfolded the frames of her glasses and arranged them on her face. Clapping her hands together to revive her lamp, she thought, _I've got to change that lamp. _

Carmelita picked up her unusually light book and flipped through its three pages in defeat. She sighed and squinted at the wavy title: THE AMISH PHONE DIRECTORY.

Throwing her book and glasses off her face and clapping the light to sleep, Carmelita plopped onto the bed with thoughts ringing in her head.

_You shouldn't be here. You should be outside, patrolling and stopping punk criminals like Sly Cooper!_

Carmelita scream was muted by her pillow.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WO HOHO! What a long chapter, at least we know what Carmelita's been up to!

advice from the stars:

carmelita- Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level then beat you with experience.

Gabby- Life is an orange. It has stuff outside and stuff inside.

Mona- Never go to bed angry, stay awake and plot your revenge.

Kelani- The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.


	10. How come

Sorry guys, now that i've posted this chapter up, did ya guess the change? that's right! i like totally forgot the fiendish five killed **both** of sly's parents (though he does make the bigger deal about his daddy)! anyway, i like to keep my stories as true to the original plot as possible, so i couldn't make some woman appear out of nowhere claiming to be his mommy! i hope the changes aren't that bad, i like the first drafts too, but what had to be done had to be done, cause then i couldn't sleep knowing i had overlooked such a big detail!

i hope you guys still love me!

-cristina

**In the security room...**

"Idiots seem to want to take their good sweet _time_." Mona whined through clenched teeth. She had triggered the silent alarm centuries ago. The thieves idled through the museum as tourists would through a new city. The cops drove their cars as though they were floats in a parade. Mona brushed aside her bangs.

The seconds passed like hours.

Finally the impatient raccoon caught the sight of blaring cop cars rounding the corner and she smiled.

Mona's moment of triumpth was disturbed by the first guard that shrieked like a girl before.

"Uhhhh, lady?" The guard who was rather heavyset spoke from behind the closed locker door. "I gotta use the toilet. Do you think you can-"

Mona spun around in her chair and spoke to the locker. "Shut Up!"

"But Ms.Lady-"

She got up and forced a knife through one the locker slots. The heavyset guard back slammed onto the back of the locker. He whimpered.

"Shut.Up." Mona repeated. She wiggled the handle and slid the blade from out the locker slot and threw it carelessly on the floor. Slamming her hands onto the desk, she moved her left hand and lightly drummed her fingers over the keyboard.

**At the museum...**

What a boring break-in. The newspaper said _Carmelita_ would be here. Sly stopped in his tracks.

"Uh, I'm going to backtrack this way, Bentley." Sly said, pointing behind himself.

"Why? We didn't _miss anything_." Bently asked Sly in a suspicious tone that let Sly know that Bentley knew exactly what he was up to. He tried not to smile.

Sly began to run the other direction. "Uh, I'll snag us some extra loot and catch you at the van!"

**In the security room...**

When the cops and the blips were exactly where she wanted, Mona pressed a key that triggered the museum alarm.

**At the museum...**

When the museum's alarms blared to life, the thieves turned their heads around instinctly.

"Make that back at the house!" Bently yelled.

"House it is!" Sly sprinted foward.

Murray said simply, "Shouldn't we go too?"

"Sly can handle himself; come on, let's get out of here!"

**Somewhere in the museum...**

Gabby akwardly uncrossed her legs and then crossed them again.

"Shouldn't I... be getting out of here? Sly's most likely gone _now_, why would he stay and look for me?

"I _told_ you, he won't be looking for you, he'll be looking for Inspector fox."

_He's going to be pretty dissapointed when he finds me instead. If he does even show up. _Gabby rubbed the nail file against her nails forcibly.

_"_Well, this annoying alarm is making it harder for me to just **sit** here."

Gabby heard Mona sigh. Then she heard keyboard tapping, and then the alarm silenced.

"There. Happy?"

"How did you do that? Where are you?"

Mona watched the slow thieves and even slower officers run throught the museum. She scowled. "Don't worry about it."

Gabby scoffed.

"I'm serious. Stay where you are. If you leave that table, you won't be able to get him with the-"

**At the museum...**

Sly Cooper glanced down into a room from the raftors. "Carmelita..."

**Somewhere in the museum...**

"Why do I need that thing anyway?"

"I'll tell you later."

"How do you know Sly Cooper won't knock me out the way thieves do to unexpected guards?"

"You should know he wont do that."

"I don't care! Time has passed, People change!" Gabby gasped.

Gabby inhaled a nervous breath and Gabby sighed.

"If I hear a loud thud and the line goes dead, I'll call 911."

Gabby was shocked to bits. She snatched her bag. and sat up. "Okay, now im going."

She then immediately obeyed Mona's command to sit.

"Sly Cooper is on his way there." Mona growled.

"How do you know that? Where are you?"

Mona continued to ignore the questions of a very insecure and ignorant Gabby and squinted at a screen. "The gem has a device on it."

"What? The gem has a _device_ on it? How do you know this? How'd you get a device on Sly?"

Mona leaned her head on her fingers and rubbed her temples. _Please, Gabby. Stop asking questions. For the sake of everyone, for the sake of your and everyone else's life; For once just shut up and do as you're told like a good little girl. How hard is that? _

Mona exhaled. She closed her eyes.

"I dont have one on Sly, that's what the needle is for."

"A tracking...serum?"

"Exactly."

"Aha! So how'd you know-"

"Shut up he's in the room!"

Gabby squealed. She called out to Mona.

"What do you mean?!"

"He's on top of you!"

"Mona don't leave me alone-"

But she had already hung up.

At that moment a shadowy masculine figure holding a cane landed with a thud just eight feet from where Gabby was sitting.

She gasped.

------------------------------------------------------------

She walked toward him, her dress billowing in the wind -not a calm and predictable billow like the sea, but more like the billowing of a mildewed shower curtain in a cheap motel where one has to dance around to avoid touching it while trying to rinse off soap.

--------but seriously, i was reading this story on called All's fair, gosh it was so great. anyway, i went looking for it because it had been years since i read it, and then i didn't find it, so i checked out the profile of the author. she had written on her profile that she had deleted all her stories because they were junk and that's she was going to leave the site-coward- and it was surely heartbreaking, because she was my idol and the reason i had started writing here! anyway, if you're reading this and you know who i'm talking about, **noalyn aka vanished paradigm **i think it is and if and only if you have any way of telling me where i can get her stories YOU MUST LET ME KNOW! ANY WAY YOU CAN GET ME HER STORIES LET. ME. KNOW. BECAUSE I MUST READ THEM! thank you.-----------


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